Juno had covered the clinic worktable with clean backing and put a line of tape down its center. On one side lay Nara’s preserved sample. On the other lay unused dressing material from the same supply packet.
Eli stopped with his hands against the doorframe.
“Has someone else examined it?”
“The receiving examiner recorded the wound,” Juno said. “This material was released for the comparison we requested. The second portion stays untouched for another examiner.”
A transfer record lay beneath a transparent weight. Tessa checked the seal number against Juno’s note, then signed that she had seen the container opened. It was a small, dull action. Eli watched it as though the pen might change what the sample contained.
Bram had remained outside to follow the delayed maintenance delivery. Kellan was at the clinic desk, waiting for news of Theo’s treatment schedule. Sera had returned from the depot after leaving her observation time and the public loading arrangement with Olin. Her coat dripped into a tray beside the door.
“What did you see?” Eli asked her.
“Food, vehicles, another argument about departure times. No Mira.”
